Back from the Dead
by Often Late Kate
Summary: This story takes the characters from Twilight and puts them in the world of The Walking Dead when the outbreak first occurs. It's timed so that the Twilight story enters the apocalypse during the second book, New Moon, after Edward has left Bella for several months. Rated T for violence.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my very first story ever! So if you read please give feedback on how I could improve the story or my writing. I'm not very serious about continuing this and mostly just want to see where it goes. I don't own Twilight characters or the zombie world of Walking Dead.**

Bella and Charlie huddled closer together under the one blanket. The Cullens stood sentry over the police station. It was a good thing they didn't sleep. After the outbreak Edward and his whole family had rushed to her side. She still didn't know where she stood with Edward now. When he came back to her he was intensely concerned for her well-being, but he had been cold and distant towards her ever since. She was lucky to have been at the police station when full-blown chaos broke loose.

She had been a zombie herself for several months. Edward had left her, and she was going through the motions for her father's sake, but inside she was dead. Then the true dead reanimated – but not as vampires. They had no idea how it had started. She was in chemistry when a sick classmate slumped over his lab bench. Within minutes he reanimated. His lab partner was trying to shake him awake; she was bitten. Panic followed. Luckily, Bella sat in the front and was one of the first out the door when the infected student went on a rampage. The others pressing behind her weren't so lucky. Many were scratched or bitten before they got out and barricaded the door.

Charlie was called to the school to talk down the crazed boy locked in the chemistry room. He hadn't responded to anything anyone said, not even when his mother wanted to talk to him on the phone. The infected boy only gazed at them with hungry, empty eyes and pressed his face against the glass on the door, teeth clicking against the surface. He looked so horrifyingly sick; his head was bleeding. Bella gagged when she saw the blood smeared on his face and the window and looked away. Everyone had been herded into the adjacent classroom, but they watched from the doorway.

Finally, Charlie tried opening the door and cuffing him. He narrowly escaped being bitten when the boy tackled him on the spot. They wrestled for several minutes on the floor, the boy trying to bite Dad's face. Her dad was stronger, but he was trying to hold him back without being bitten or using lethal force. It ended with Charlie on top, pushing the boy forcefully to the ground. The boy didn't catch himself on his elbows going down, and he landed with full force on the back of his head. There was a sickening crunch of bone, and the boy went limp. Panting heavily, Charlie got to his feet. The school nurse had already been summoned, and she checked the boy's body.

"He's dead," she had said. Frightened whispers erupted from the neighboring classrooms that had been watching from afar. There was nothing Charlie could have done; the boy was out of control. Everyone bitten had been sent to the hospital for treatment, and the rest of the school was let out for the day. The boy was carried out in a body bag by paramedics, faces grim. Charlie told Bella to wait for him at the police station. He still had to question the teachers and talk to the boy's mother when she arrived.

Bella gathered her things from her locker and did as her father told her. She watched the television at the station as news reports from all over the world poured in of mysterious attacks by infected, crazed individuals. The incidents were attributed to rabies or a similar virus. It wasn't long before they figured out that anyone bitten would die and come back as zombies. That's when things got out of control.


	2. Chapter 2

The Forks police force wasn't large. Within hours the station was swamped with calls concerning violent attacks. Every officer was called in to answer them; the entire nation was in a state of emergency. Charlie called to tell her he was at the hospital, and under no circumstance was she to leave the station. There were a few frantic citizens running into the station off the street trying to escape the havoc.

The streets weren't safe. Besides the occasional zombie, there were looters. The sporting goods store Mike's parents owned was overrun with looters taking survival gear. For the first time in months Bella felt awake, but she'd woken up to a nightmare. She curled up on Charlie's office chair in his cubicle. Bella pulled her knees into her chest and took deep breaths. Charlie or Jake would come get her, she just had to wait.

That's when a woman at the front of the station collapsed. Someone screamed, and everyone backed away. The officer on duty edged closer and took out his gun. They waited a tense moment, and the woman twitched back to life. The officer raised his gun.

"Ma'am, are you alright?" he shouted. The fallen woman said nothing, but rose unsteadily to her feet. She gazed at the armed officer with the same dead stare Bella had seen on the boy who'd collapsed in chemistry. The woman took a shuffling step forward and reached out to him, hands grasping the empty air. "Down on the ground!" he ordered, "Now!"

She lurched toward him instead, and he fired a shot into her shoulder as she advanced. She jerked back momentarily but continued her slow charge. He fired off two more shots, both hitting her square in the chest. The woman barely slowed. She tackled him clumsily and buried her teeth in his arm. Screaming, he writhed and beat her with the butt of his pistol, trying to shake her off however he could.

They watched, horrified, as she tore a hunk of flesh out of his forearm. Bright red blood sprayed from the wound, and Bella felt bile rise in her throat. She upended her lunch violently into the waste basket under Charlie's desk. The officer still struggled with the woman, trying desperately to get his feet under him and throw her off. The rest of the civilians were screaming and running for the door. A few people stayed, with two men trying to pull her off, but she ignored that they even existed, latched as she was on the officer's arm, gulping down his blood.

It was like Bella was watching in slow motion; everything around her was happening so fast. Finally, the struggle ended with the policeman putting the gun to the woman's temple and pulling the trigger. The shot made a muffled, wet bang as the bullet went through the woman's brain.

Those who had fled were gone now, and the few who remained were catching their breath. The policeman was holding someone's jacket to his arm to staunch the bleeding. "Is everyone okay?" he asked, looking gratefully at the ones who'd tried to help him. Everyone present nodded.

"What should we do with her body?" asked someone. It was Cora who asked, the waitress from Charlie's favorite diner. The woman from before was lying face down on the floor, a puddle of dark blood pooling around her from the hole punched through her head. No one said anything in response. The police officer was the first to break the brief stint of shocked silence.

"We'll call the hospital, see if they can send down someone from the morgue to examine the body and an ambulance for me," he said. To Bella he said, "Can you call the sheriff? Tell him what's happened. He's at the hospital now."

**A/N: Is anyone else anxious to have the Cullens make an appearance? I know I am. Please review with any questions, comments, or insults! **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: There's going to be some gore in this chapter. If you get grossed out from graphic descriptions of bodies being torn apart, then be warned. You still have time to navigate away from this page! With that said here's chapter three! **

Cora was calling the hospital. Meanwhile, Bella tried calling Charlie. Bella bit her lower lip nervously. The situation was going from bad to worse. The policeman, Bill, was trying to put up a brave face and maintain order, but he was sweating and shaking from both fear and blood loss. He sat in a cubicle keeping pressure on the gash in his arm. Ten minutes passed and neither Charlie nor the hospital had answered the phone.

"What should we do? No one's picking up," Cora asked the officer.

"We need to go to the hospital; I've lost too much blood," he replied. "Can someone drive me? Cora? Bella? We'll take the squad car."

Bella could barely look at the blood-soaked man without feeling a nauseating lurch her abdominals. Seeing Bella's face Cora answered, "I'll take you, Bill. Where are the keys?"

"They're in the cabinet in the back room," said Bill, rising from his seat to show her. As he got to his feet his face went white, and he crumpled to the floor.

"Bill? Bill!" shouted Cora, running to his side. The two men who'd also stayed rushed over. Bella hung back a little, afraid she might make the situation worse by vomiting everywhere. She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the metallic tang of blood thick in the air.

One of the men bent over the unconscious officer, his ear an inch away from his nose. "He's not breathing!" he said, sitting up.

Bella saw Bill's hand twitch. "Look!" she said, pointing to the hand. A soft moan escaped the officer's lips. "Bill?" she called out. His eyes fluttered open, but he said nothing.

"Hey, are you alright, sir?" asked the man who'd checked his breathing. Bill's head turned in the man's direction, his eyes were empty and unfocused. He shakily lifted a hand from his side, and reached out very slowly. Neither the policeman nor the man who knelt beside him made any sudden movements, but the man edged away from him.

"You need to go to the hospital," he said. Bill groaned, and his blank eyes widened.

"Bill, what's wrong?" asked Cora. She was shaking with fear. The officer sat up and was stumbling to his feet. Everyone –Bella, Cora, the two men – were backing away from him now. Bella's hair stood up on the back of her neck. What was this feeling? The look on Bill's face reminded her eerily of being with Edward. He looked _hungry_, and she was his prey.

Then from the front they heard a crash and the tinkle of broken glass. Bella's head swiveled to the source of the sound. The front door of the station had been rammed open. The glass in the doors was gone, and the mental frame was bent and buckled. She turned back to Bill.

Stony pale hands gripped his throat from behind. She couldn't see who held him, but her heart fluttered with tremulous hope. Bill flopped in the stranger's iron grip like a hooked fish. He still gazed hungrily at Bella and the others, groping the air in front of him futilely. There was sound like a seam being ripped, and Bill's head twisted and was torn away from his neck. Cora screamed.

What remained of Bill slumped onto the ground, the stump of a neck oozing dark blood. Bella turned to a fortuitously placed bin and hurled up what was left in her stomach; she hadn't thought there was anything left to throw up. A small, cold hand gently patted her back.

"Hey, Bella," cooed a high voice, softly. "We came as soon as we could. Edward's still on his way."

**A/N: I still have absolutely no idea where this is going, but now things are starting to get interesting! What sort of challenges will humans and vampires face in this new zombie-filled apocalypse? Just how awkward is it going to be when Bella and Edward are reunited? ****Comments, questions and insults are welcomed.**


	4. Chapter 4

Bella wiped her mouth and looked up into eyes like liquid amber. She had believed she'd never see Alice again. "Alice? What's going on?" she asked.

"The dead are walking," she answered shortly. "You haven't been bitten, have you?" She looked her over as she said it. Alice's hair framed her perfect pale face in brown soft curls that ended just at her ears. Her designer dress, however, had seen better days. It was torn in several placed and splattered with red-brown gore. Bella tried not to think about who Alice was wearing on her would-be adorable shoes.

"No, I'm fine," said Bella shakily. "It's all the blood; I thought I couldn't vomit anymore but I was wrong."

"It's going to be okay. We're all here for you," she said, smiling. "I'm just so happy to see you again!"

The doors clattered, and in a flash Carlisle stood beside them. "Bella, you're alright" he said in greeting. Then to Alice, "Go and help the others. I'll stay with her."

"Carlisle! How is this happening? Where's Edward?" she asked in a rush. He too had blood splattered on him, but his white winter jacket sported bright red splashes rather than the darker gunk that clung to Alice.

"This is a virus unlike anything we've seen before, spreading like wildfire. The dead are walking." In a gentler tone he added, "Edward is on his way as fast as he can travel. The airports are closed from the outbreak, but he's running on foot, swimming, anything he can to get here."

"Where has he been?" she asked, trying not to sound too anxious, but her face must have given her away. He looked at once apologetic and pitying.

"Here and there. We haven't been able to keep up with him most of the time. He's coming from South America now."

Bella's head was still spinning. What had Edward been doing all this time? Had he missed her or thought of her at all since he left?

"The others are trying to take out the walkers as we speak," Carlisle continued, although her thoughts were elsewhere. "It's a challenge for Jasper and the others not to lose control in the presence of so much blood. Luckily, infected blood holds little appeal for our kind, but there are plenty who are bleeding and still alive."

Bella was so relieved, so overwhelmed to see them even though the world was ending outside. She barely heard Carlisle her head felt so light. Not wanting to sound like a child as she said this, she had to ask, "Did you all really want to never see me again?" Tears welled up in her eyes unbidden, but she would not let them fall.

"I'm so sorry we had to leave. Edward was heartbroken, but Jasper was on his side. Eventually he persuaded us that we had to do whatever was in our power to protect you. We're still trying to protect you; nothing has changed."

"He was heartbroken?" Bella repeated. "I thought he didn't want me."

Carlisle only chuckled and said, "He could never stop loving you, Bella."

**A/N: Happy Holidays, all! I hope to bring you more action soon. I know not much has happened so far, but there will be more gore and nail-biting (or neck-biting?) chapters in store! Please review with any questions, comments, or insults – I love those!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I've been very neglectful of this story, and to be honest was stuck. Hopefully, that's behind us because for now I have a clear direction to head in. Thank you to psychovampirefreak, CastleEch, Sammy, ShadowCub, and BrightStar Kenobi for the reviews. I got some great suggestions and encouragement, and I really appreciate all your imput! **

The sound of someone pumping a shotgun interrupted Bella's reverie. Across the room the man who'd earlier checked the officer's was breathing pointing a shotgun at Carlisle. Cora stood beside him, holding Bill's pistol. Bella noticed they looked nervous, and Cora examined the mangled body of the former police officer with shock. The other man from before was nowhere in sight. Bella assumed he fled through the twisted front doors.

"Richard?" Carlisle began, "there's no need for this. We've worked together; you know me."

"You stay where you are, Dr. Cullen, until we figure out what the hell is going on," replied Richard. He looked a little shaken, but his hands were steady as he held the loaded shotgun.

Carlisle rushed forward in a step too fast for Bella to see, and in the next second he stood an inch away from the end of the barrel. The man flinched, and fired a shot into the doctor's chest. Richard had to take a step back from the recoil, but Carlisle stood his ground. The front of his shirt showed a tight circle of holes from the close-ranged shot. The armed pair gazed at the holes with numb incredulity.

"Let me explain," Carlisle began. "You may have noticed from working together at the hospital, but my family and I are different. We do not age and cannot be hurt like normal people, and our speed and strength are inhuman. I can take your weapons from you, but I'd rather you lower them now and use them only against the ghouls outside."

He paused and stared at the two pointedly.

They lowered their guns. "What are you?" asked Richard.

"Well, frankly," started Carlisle, "Vampires." Their jaws dropped an inch lower.

A sharp tapping alerted Bella to the front doors. "Knock, knock!" It was Esme. Her pearly teeth were set in a wide smile, and her clothes were torn. Like Alice she had dark brown stains across the front of her stylish white blouse. "Sorry to interrupt, but we need Carlisle outside. We found more survivors, and they're hurt. Jasper is having a hard time."

Carlisle nodded. "I'll be out. Keep Jasper preoccupied where the infected are thickest." He turned back to Bella. "Take a gun from the back. Don't let them bite you; that's how it spreads." In a flash he was out the doors.

"Good to see you again, Bella," Esme added before turning and disappearing onto the streets.

Cora and Richard stood dumbfounded, looking where the two vampires disappeared.

"Are there any more of those?" Bella asked, gesturing to the guns.

"Yeah," Cora said absently. "It's still open."

Bella didn't know the first thing about firearms, and took the first handgun she saw. Her dad taught her enough to check that the safety was on. She took the bullets closest to it on the shelf, not knowing if they were the right kind for this gun. When she returned to Cora and Richard they were stacking the chairs in front of the broken doors as best they could. Richard stood a ficus awkwardly in front of the doors as well. They paused when they noticed Bella watching, and exchanged a nervous glance. Bella's insides squirmed. Were they really scared of her?

"That looks good enough," said Cora. "Let's hide until the Cullens come back. We can lock ourselves in the room with the guns."

The other man agreed, so Bella followed them into the room she'd just come from.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Another chapter! Thank you to psychovampirefreak for the review! **

"Did you know what they were?" Cora asked, breaking the silence in the back room. Her stare made Bella self-conscious.

Bella chewed her lip. "Yes," she answered simply.

"So they… drink blood?"

"They aren't like others," she said, defensive. "They hunt animals. They wouldn't hurt people."

"Oh, that's better, I guess," Cora said stiffly. They said nothing after that.

Something clattered beyond the door.

"What was that?" whispered Cora.

It was Richard who answered, "I don't know." Shut in as they were, they couldn't see what was happening in the station or the streets. They listened intently for any noises. Bella barely caught the sound of voices. If only the door could lock! But it only locked from the outside. She found herself wishing that the sounds were walking dead instead of humans. The dead wouldn't open doors, and vampires wouldn't be so loud.

Every muscle in the room tensed as the muffled voices and footsteps drew closer to their hiding place. As they came closer Bella could distinguish words.

"What the hell happened to him?" shouted someone. There was a cry of disgust. They must have found Bill's body.

"Come on, let's find the guns. There aren't any cops here," said another voice. They were getting closer.

Richard eased in front of the door, gun raised. Bella and Cora got behind him, guns in hand. She wasn't even sure hers was loaded. They held their breath.

There were more bumps and clatters, and very soon the voices were right in front of their door.

"Have you tried this one?" said one man. The knob turned, and the door opened. He was tall and young, about mid-twenties. Not especially tough-looking, but his limbs looked wiry and quick. He wore some worn-out blue jeans and a T-shirt. He looked surprised to see them at first, and then he caught sight of Richard's gun pointed at his head.

"Easy, man. We don't want to hurt anyone," he said, raising his hands complacently.

"Then get out," returned Richard, softly.

From around the corner came, "Did you find them?"

"Yeah, man, I found them."

The other man walked into view. He was the same age as his partner, but with a softer face and pudgier composition. "What's this?"

"Just get out, both of you," warned Richard. The first man was measuring Richard up. He took in his gun and was looking over the guns behind him. She felt his gaze sweep over her, too, and it was creepy.

"We can't go back outside unarmed," he replied. "You can't keep them all for yourself."

"We're holding them till the police get back," Richard said tersely.

"Let's go," said the second man.

"Okay, we're going," he agreed. They both backed up, and then they were gone.

Richard waited a minute before closing the door. They let out a sigh of relief. Bella noticed Cora's hands shaking.

"They probably won't be the last ones," Richard predicted. "Other looters will come when they see the front doors."

Inwardly, Bella agreed. The world had suddenly become a much more dangerous place to be alive.

**A/N: This chapter doesn't really move the story forward, but it shows that other humans will still be a threat. More exciting chapters to come! Questions, comments, and insults are welcome!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Who else is on the moon about the new _Walking Dead _episodes coming out? The wait is finally over! That said, thanks to psychovampirefreak, OSR fanatic, and Oricke for the reviews! **

According to her cell phone it was 7:35. That would mean total darkness soon. Bella shuddered at the thought of the undead wandering the streets of Forks in pitch blackness. She could tell the other two were growing restless. They hadn't had any more encounters since the looters from earlier. A few times they heard muffled voices calling cautiously for the police.

"Rick, we should go out and tell them we're here," Cora had said. "They can hide with us until someone comes back."

Richard had flat-out refused to make themselves known. It was too dangerous, he said. They argued in whispers until the voices retreated from the station. Cora glared sullenly at him, but said nothing more, even when others came looking for the police. They were all terrified – of the walkers and of people – especially after the looters. Most who came to the station looking for police left hurriedly when they found it abandoned. Bill's corpse was still lying out there, after all.

_Knock, knock, knock. _They hadn't heard anyone walk in. Bella knew it wasn't the police, then. Richard raised his gun. The door swung open, and Alice was on the other side. Her warm amber eyes seemed to light up in the cold electric light of the gun room. She smiled sweetly and asked, "Ready to go?"

"Go where?" Bella asked.

"I'm giving you guys a ride to our house. The others will meet up there eventually," she answered. "It's the safest place for you right now."

"I thought we were waiting for the police," said Cora.

"The police aren't coming," Alice said simply and with authority. Cora blanched.

"How do you know?" Richard demanded. "Why should we follow you back to your _lair_ when you ripped Bill in half?"

"He wasn't Bill anymore, and I just know. This really isn't a safe place to be," she replied, genuine concern in her voice. "And Bella can tell you we don't eat people, right?" She looked at her for support.

A thought struck Bella. "What about my dad?" she asked.

That was not what Alice had expected her to say. For an instant her eyes clouded, like she was looking through Bella at something far away. "That changes things," she said softly.

"Should we pick him up on the way?" Bella suggested apprehensively. She didn't like how quiet Alice was all of a sudden. She was looking out in the distance again, still as a statue.

"No… I think you better stay here. I'll go get him and come back," she said after a moment. Then, "Stay here, okay? Don't go anywhere, and we'll be back before you know it."

The forced brightness in her expression troubled Bella more than her earlier silence, but she only nodded and said, "You know where he is?"

"The hospital," she confirmed. Leaden dread settled in her stomach at her confirmation. What had Alice seen in her vision?

"Stay here, all of you, and I'll bring Charlie," she repeated before leaving. The door closed and she was gone without a sound.

"What was that all about?" asked Cora.

Bella shrugged.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Another chapter! This one is a bit longer than usual, and I hope that makes up for not updating in so long. I'm still trying to develop my writing voice, and this project in particular experienced some growing pains. Let me know if you love it/hate it, and what you want to see happen! Thank you to Oricke, wilkinsbecca, and KissMeI'mScottish for the reviews. **

"Dad!"

"Bella!" Charlie folded his daughter into his arms and softly patted her hair. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"What happened? Are you alright?" Bella asked, looking him over. He had on a dark, long-sleeved windbreaker and long pants. His gun was still on his hip, but Bella saw no wounds or splatters of blood.

"I don't know. I mean, I am, but everything got so out of control so quickly at the hospital." The next part he said to Richard, "I'm glad you weren't at the Hospital, Rick, or else you might not have made it out of there." From this and what Carlisle had said to him earlier, Bella had deduced that Richard worked at the hospital. Her dad was familiar with all of the hospital staff because of his job.

"We can't stay here much longer. It's time to go," interjected Alice. Her clothes bore even more blood stains so that her blouse had become a mottled canvas of browns and dull reds.

Charlie examined her with a guarded expression. "Can you tell me what I just saw at the hospital?" He asked. "The bodies attacking people and how you tore through them like that?"

"I can, but not now," Alice pleaded. "Please, come with us. Our family can protect you."

Charlie seemed reluctant, but gave in, throwing his arms up in a gesture half surrender and half shrug.

"Are you two coming?" Alice said to Cora and Richard. They nodded.

It was full night as they turned and began walking to the door. Alice stopped and threw out her arm, signaling them to stop. "We're too late," she said, facing away. Her voice came from far away again. "There's too many of _them _in the streets, blocking our way."

They glanced through the twisted double doors. The streetlights had turned on, illuminating an empty stretch of road. Nothing moved, living or otherwise.

Cora said what they all thought, "There isn't anyone on the street. What are you talking about?"

It must have been a vision Alice was having. "There will be more on the road as we drive there," she clarified. "If we get caught in it, I can't protect you all."

"Now hold on, what are you talking about?" Richard demanded, clearly confused and infuriated. "I've had it up to here with this vampire nonsense!"

"Vampires?" Charlie cut in, looking incredulous.

"A hoard is coming for us either way," Alice said cryptically. "I need to call the others."

More confused than ever, Charlie rounded on Bella. "Can you explain?" he asked sternly.

"Dad, it's complicated. The Cullens – they're vampires, but it's not what you think," she began. "They don't eat people and Alice is unique. She can see the future."

Charlie stared in disbelief. Alice had already stepped outside and pulled out her phone. She talked fast and low, her words indistinguishable.

"I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. I mean, look at what's happening now," Bella rambled on. "Say something, Dad."

It was Richard who answered, though. "It sounds crazy as hell," he interrupted. Then, he laughed like it was a bad joke. "I mean, come on, this one can see the future? What's Dr. Cullen's super power? That is, besides being super-fast and super-strong?"

"Don't be a jerk," Cora grumbled. "Okay? We've all had enough today. I wouldn't have thought any of this was possible."

"I'm just saying," He added defensively, "I'm agreeing with her."

Charlie looked at Bella hard: he seemed to have made a judgment. She squirmed, not meeting his eyes, but feeling them all the same. "How long has this been going on? That you knew?" he questioned her.

"I didn't know at first." _Before I fell in love with him, _she thought. "But I've known for a long time."

"It's not her fault, we asked her not to tell you or anyone," Alice interjected, hanging up the phone and rejoining the conversation. "Help is on the way, but the hoard will get here first. Hide now and you can stay out of the line of fire." Charlie said nothing in response. He was looking anywhere but at Bella.

It only took Alice a few minutes to roll her gleaming sports car in front of the compromised entrance. She didn't start the engine, saying they would hear it and be drawn to them. "Don't make any noise," she reminded them before racing down the road in the direction she saw the "hoard" coming from in her vision. Only Alice would use such an archaic, goofy-sounding word for them.

The four pulled two desks together to hide behind and turned off the lights. None of them were keen on waiting in the claustrophobic gun closet in total darkness. With the lights off it was hard to peer inside from the street. The desks would obscure them from view, and they could watch the entrance from there.

As she was crouching behind the makeshift look-out defense, Charlie pulled a blanket over Bella's shoulders. "Here," he offered. "It's the only one I could find in the station. You need a thicker jacket." She accepted it gratefully. The temperature had dropped as night descended. She hoped this gesture meant that Charlie wasn't mad at her for hiding what the Cullens were.

Moments later, a chorus of moans and snarls echoed down the street. They didn't see any of the large group, only a few stray undead that come down the street from the wrong direction. They had probably been on a different trajectory until they heard Alice. Over the din of undead voices they could hear her clapping her hands and whooping. She was leading them away, probably to deal with them elsewhere. None of the undead peered through the windows; they only blindly followed the sound, looking at the pavement in front of them.

Out of nowhere, a lone figure dropped from a rooftop onto the street. Bella's heart caught in her throat. With a few quick twists he tore off the heads of the walkers in front of the station. When his work was done, he turned and headed for the station. His eyes penetrated the darkness and found hers in the station, looking out from behind the desk. The streetlights stuck his eyes, which burned as black as coal. The heat of his gaze gave her chills. It spoke of both hunger and possession.

With a light, loping step he hopped over the car blocking the door. Charlie stood suddenly, his hand flying to the gun on his hip. "You stay right there," he warned.

Edward froze with his eyes still on Bella. "She's not hurt? Not bitten?" he breathed softly.

"She's fine, and she's going to stay that way. You'll keep your distance," said Charlie.

"Bella?" Edward called out to her, imploring.

"Don't you speak to her!" shouted Charlie, and he drew his gun.

Seeing him again, the way he said her name stabbed in her heart and twisted like a knife. She swallowed. "Please, go," she managed finally. She could feel the hole she'd thought was plugged tear open again. She blinked away tears, and missed the split second it took for him to melt into the night.

**A/N: As always, questions, comments, and insults are welcomed!**


End file.
